Crackle Glass Cylinder?

I'm in need of four crackle glass cylinders, nine inches in diamter by about 9 1/2 inches tall. They'll be used as lenses for a lighting project. Even better--I need them in three weeks.

I'm wondering where to start? I guess glass blowers, because if I understand the process, they'd be blown, then dipped hot to create the crackle effect. I found two blowers on the web & have emails in to both.

I'll take any suggestions that will help me get these pieces made. I have almost no expericence in this sort of thing.

Thanks,

Brian

Reply to
brrian
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Sorry, Brian, but you will never get them in three weeks.

First, you need to find a glass blower with skill to produce what you want and then persuade him (money!) to do the job for you. Most glass blowers are like any other artist-- starving-- so you will eventually find someone who will agree to try it. The problem is your time frame. If there was a glassblower nearby, you might luck out-- especially if you live in the northwest (capital of the glassblowing world in the USA).

I am not trying to shoot down your idea, only the time frame demands of it. If you can allow more time, making the cylinders is not that hard.

Here is how it is done:

The blower creates a cylinder shape on a blowpipe. At this point it has a flat bottom and and a neck which is attached to the blowpipe and looks like a soda bottle. A punty (steel rod) is stuck onto the flat bottom and the neck is severed from the blowpipe. The neck is then opened out to be even with the walls of the future cylinder. Now you have a flat-bottomed, straight-sided vase. If the blower is skilled, he can make the open edge very even. If not, you may need to use a glass saw or bottle-cutter to produce a perfect edge after the glass has been annealed.

At this point there are two paths to finish off a cylinder. The antique sheet-glass guys have a three-pronged rod which grips the cut edge of the cylinder. The punty is detached, the flat bottom heated and cut off. I have never seen these three-pronged gadgets used anywhere but at a sheet-glass factory, so don't expect an artistic glassblower to have one laying around! The second (more likely) option is to take the flat-bottom vase off the punty and use a glass saw or bottle cutter to finish creating the cylinder after annealing.

So where does the crackle step come in you ask? That depends on the skill of the glassblower. For maximum effect, the crackle should be created as late in the process as possible. The more often a piece is re-heat and worked on, the more the crackle will disappear back into the hot glass. So speed and control are critical. The actual effect is created by plunging the hot vessel into a tub of water. One must move fast and pray that you don't destroy the piece in the process. It is an exciting and showy step, sure to please anyone watching.

Hope this helps.

--Cactus Bob

Reply to
Cactus Bob

try Blenko in West Virgina. They make crackle vases as part of their regular line of products

Reply to
Vic

I seriously doubt that Blenko will stop their production line to create four custom cylinders! Or if they did, it would cost thousands of dollars.

Since the poster did not divulge his location, perhaps a better recommendation would be to contact the nearest art museum, gallery or art school. Those folks would know who in the area blows glass. Another resource would be the Glass Art Society

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Go to their Q&A section and start your hunt.

--Cactus Bob

Reply to
Cactus Bob

Maybe they already make that diameter, which could simply be cut off to the required height.

Sure he did. It's right there in his headers: "somewhere in or near Philadelphia."

Reply to
Steve Ackman

A quick check of Blenko's catalog shows that they do not make the size he needs. That is why I said what I did. Even if he were willing to change his size requirements, the vases looked like they have paddled sides anyway.

If that is so, then my bad.

I see nothing in the "header" that mentions Philadelphia. All I see is "Crackle Glass Cylinder." Maybe my software does not display all of the information he submitted. I am using Mozilla Thunderbird.

Non the less, I think his best bet is still to contact a small artist glass blower. Contacting a large factory setting like Blenko is unlikely to be productive.

--Cactus Bob

Reply to
Cactus Bob

Contact this company I have been to their production site - and their glass blowers are capable of this -- they also have the large cylinder edge cutter.. uses gas jet flames to cut around the bubble - creating a rim... (saw them use it to cut the tops off of very large handblown triffle bowls -- very cool!) These old time glassblowers can certainly handle making what you want -- just a matter of if they will bother with a small order.

West Virginia Glass Speciality, Inc. P.O. Box 248 107 Main St. Ellenboro, WV 26346 Phone: 304-869-3374 Fax: 304-869-3375 Cheryl Keggan

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brrian wrote:

Reply to
Cheryl

Ahhh. Well, if you'd said it that way to start with, I wouldn't have written what I did. (I don't have a Blenko catalog.)

Yes, I know you're using T'bird. It's in your headers; an old windoze version of it at that. ;-)

Yup. No disagreement there.

Reply to
Steve Ackman

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